


How the Seeker Stole Christmas

by goodnyte



Series: Optimus Prime/Starscream 2014 Advent Challenge [7]
Category: Transformers - All Media Types, Transformers Generation One
Genre: Gen, M/M, genre: fluff, series: OP/SS 2014 Advent Challenge, verse: g1
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-10
Updated: 2014-12-10
Packaged: 2018-02-28 21:35:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 952
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2747933
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/goodnyte/pseuds/goodnyte
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Not everyone is happy for the holidays.</p>
            </blockquote>





	How the Seeker Stole Christmas

**Author's Note:**

> **‘Verse:** G1  
>  **Series:** Optimus/Starscream Advent Challenge 2014  
>  **Rating:** G  
>  **Characters:** Optimus Prime/Starscream  
>  **Warnings:** None.  
>  **Notes:** Set in G1, with a pre-existing established relationship. Written for Day 7 of the Optimus Prime/Starscream Advent Challenge, the Grinch/Stealing Christmas.

Bumblebee was passing through the corridor parallel to the rec room on the way to his hab suite, being careful as he could to not disturb the others who might be sleeping. The Ark was large enough to let most of them have their own rooms if they wanted, but habit borne out of having roommates for so long on Cybertron had taught him to move near-silently at night.

Which is how he accidentally overheard a conversation – or argument, definitely an argument – being held in the rec room. He stopped short, not wanting to disturb the scene and having to walk through it to get to his room. He stayed still and decided to wait it out, though he couldn’t help listening in on the quarrel once he figured out who was involved.

“Put that _back_ ,” Optimus said, his deep voice a harsh whisper. “Starscream, please, the others are going to know you moved things around—”

Bumblebee frowned. Starscream was touching their Christmas decorations! The mech was already unpopular on the Ark; undoing everyone’s hard work would not help his case in the eyes of the others. He had half a mind to interrupt now and back Optimus up but he didn’t want the Prime to know he’d been eavesdropping.

“Good! They should know,” Starscream screeched, his words punctuated by Optimus’ hushing. “Oh, don’t. They should hear and they should know. What is all of this garbage? You’re letting them lose who they are,” he said, his voice lowering somewhat upon the Prime’s insistence. “If I didn’t know better, I’d assume you never wanted to leave this accursed planet,” the seeker sneered.

“Of course I do,” Optimus replied, sounding affronted. “But why not let them enjoy themselves while we’re here? It’s hard enough missing home and Spike wanted to share something fun with them. I see no harm in it.”

“Cybertron had its fun. We have our holidays and traditions. Why have they been forgotten?” Starscream demanded, apparently throwing something heavy on the ground because it gave an audible _plop_ as it hit the ground.

“They have not been forgotten,” Optimus said emphatically. “Starscream, really, none of us have celebrated anything from home in millions of years. This can’t be what you’re truly upset about,” he said plainly.

“What _do_ you think I’m upset about then?” Starscream hissed.

“Starscream, please, put those down—”

“What do you think I’m upset about?”

Optimus sighed heavily, the sound of air huffing through his vents audible even to Bumblebee. “You’re upset that the others are having fun. You want to take what you can away from them because you can’t join in – you want everyone to be as miserable as you are,” Optimus said, his voice taking on a frustrated edge that usually meant someone was about to spend the night in the brig.

Starscream, for his part, was silent for a moment until the sound of ornaments crashing as the seeker dropped his remaining armful of decorations to the ground rang through the corridor. “Truly, that’s what you think?” Starscream shrieked again, voice reaching its former volume. “Perhaps you’re right but can you blame me? It’s impossible not to be miserable when trapped with the likes of you and your Autobot fools,” he said with a bitter note of finality.

The seeker left the rec room with an audible clack of thrusters against the floor as he stomped away, likely heading for the roof. Bumblebee didn’t hear Optimus right away once Starscream disappeared but he had been eavesdropping long enough, his spark only able to take so much guilt.

“Sir?” he asked as he peeked his helm over the rec room threshold. Optimus was knelt on the floor, silently wiping up the glass dust that was once ornaments and standing their tree up against the wall to keep it from falling over.

“I’m sorry, Bumblebee, there was an accident,” he started to explain though he blinked when Bumblebee knelt down next to him to help clean. He quietly accepted the help, nodding in acceptance of the assistance.

“Starscream isn’t an accident,” Bumblebee said, meaning it as a positive before realizing how it sounded. “I mean, he did this, for a reason.”

Optimus grunted, apparently not in the mood to talk about it, but Bumblebee insisted.

“He reminds me of the Grinch.”

“Does he?” Optimus asked distantly.

“Yes. Spike showed us this film on ABC Family’s 25 Days of Christmas – some sort of holiday-themed endurance test. Anyway, it’s about a mean green person who tries to take Christmas away from a town by taking all their presents and decorations.”

Optimus stilled at that, pausing in his straightening. “Oh? Starscream reminds you of a green person?”

“Sort of. Not the green part,” Bumblebee insisted. “See, the Grinch has a small heart and is bitter and lonely on top of a mountain and he hates watching everyone else have fun. But in the end, the people in the town enjoy Christmas even without all the decorations and presents and he realizes that Christmas isn’t all about this,” he said, gesturing to the mess on the floor. “It’s about something … more,” he said, smiling at Optimus. “Someone just had to show the Grinch that, that was all.”

Optimus looked at him for a moment before nodding again, returning to his dusting of the ornament glass. “I suppose he is a Grinch, indeed,” he rumbled, apparently in thought. “Thank you Bumblebee, I’ll keep the story in mind.”

Bumblebee grinned, nodding. He liked helping Optimus whenever he could but he couldn’t help but think he’d truly provided him with a solution the Prime hadn’t yet thought of for once, and that made his spark warm with the happiest swell of pride.


End file.
